The use of high-speed air-cooled rotary cutting instruments is common in dental practices. When used near open wounds, the forced air can lead to subcutaneous emphysema and involvement of vital structures.
There are dental handpieces on the market that are driven by means other than an air turbine, but they are very expensive in comparison to the average turbine handpiece, and are therefore not as widely used. Because of the expense of the non-air driven handpieces, most dentists continue to use the air-driven models on their patients for third molar extractions where open wounds occur. This problem is solved by the use of a device built specifically to block the air and water coolant parts during these types of operations.
Applicant has reviewed the patent documents of U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,476,976--Ivory, 4,752,223--Carlson, 2,731,722--Wilen, 2,835,084--Fotre, 1,549,165--Theidemann, 684,951--Rothkranz, 1,101,947--Morgan, 2,855,672--Franwick et al, 3,815,241--Lingenhohle et al, 1,821,451--Terry, and has found all of them to be for dental handpiece accessories, but none are related to the blocking of the air and water ports of the handpiece.